A Symbiotic Mess
by NebulaBlade
Summary: Pepper/Hill & Widow & Scarlet Witch Romance A deadly virus is released into New York City, and needs a host. It cannot survive off of mortal beings, and can only use the strongest of human beings. However it has competition: Itself. In the viruses' mind, "There can only be one, and it's either me or the other me"... This is also a romance Rated M For some of the middle scenes ;)
1. Enter Pepper

Stark Tower… A majesty of it's own, standing proud in the middle of New York as a sign of a superpower by all of it's rivals... Designed specifically for any man or king with a large enough ego. However, for this specific ego, he was...

 _Late. He is always late._

The sound of a powerful engine roar filled the parking garage as Pepper checked her watch yet again, probably for the 15th time. However, this time she didn't just check it to see the time, but it was also an attempt to get Tony to notice her frustration as he pulled into his garage.

Tony revved his Audi R8's engine loudly as he parked the car right next to her. He and Rhodes then stepped out as he threw up his arms.

"Pepper! Darling. It is so good to see you" Tony exclaimed sarcastically.

"Let me guess. You got caught up with another one of your 'bad guys' at the beach again?" Pepper asked.

"Try 'swimming with chicks all day' over at the pool" Rhodes smirked

"Woah, first off, there were totally some 'bad guys' there" Tony replied

"He's referring to all of the dirty 'bad girls' of course"

"And second, there were some dangerous liquids there that I had to eradicate personally. I think that should get me something"

"And by that he means that there was some very dangerously good alcoholic drinks." Rhodes replied again.

"And you DROVE home?!" Pepper took a step back with surprise

"Drove? Hah, no! … Well, maybe a little" Tony couldn't help but grin

"Ugh. Tony you were supposed to be at a meeting 3 hours ago!"

"Oh, did I miss that? That was Fury right? Something about thanking me for saving the world?" Tony Smirked

"More like Doctor Con-"

"You know what, on second thought-" Tony Interrupted

"Conners, who wanted to-" Pepper Interrupted

"Who wanted to also thank me-" Tony Interrupted again

"And is concerned about…" Pepper Interrupted yet again

"Concerned about how awesome I was against Ultron? Yup. He's definitely thanking me." Tony then stepped into his car, and started his engine. Pepper sighed in frustration.

Tony rolled his window down and shouted "Tell him that I said 'you're welcome'" The sound of his tires then screeched as he sped out of the building.

 _Asshole. That's so typical of him._

"Ugh… Will you just… Go make sure that he's okay? He's still drunk." Pepper looked over at Rhodes.

"And play babysitter? Yeah, that wouldn't be a first." Rhodes groaned, "I'll go keep an eye on him."

A deafening explosion then sounded, sending Pepper and Rhodie's ears ringing. She looked up to see Tony's orange Audi thrown into the air.

 _WHAT THE HELL?!_

"TONY!" Pepper screamed, although she couldn't even hear her own voice.

Rhodes charged towards the crashed vehicle when suddenly a red and blue blur flew past the garage door, and the car was sent flying again, with yet another ear-shattering crash. It was at this point, when they both realized that this wasn't just an accident- But this was an attack.

Rhodes, without his armor, felt completely useless. He immediately then turned around, and grabbed Pepper's wrist, pushing her into the nearby elevator. After a button press and another final push, Pepper found herself alone on the elevator's floor, moving upwards.

As she tried to stand back up, the elevator suddenly shook violently as it came to a stop, throwing her back onto the floor. All she could hear was the sound of large thuds crashing down against the building…

Thud.

 _Thud._

 _THUD._

 _ **THUD.**_

 _ **THUD.**_

The sounds were getting louder and louder, and the elevator shook harder and harder… The vibration of each thud sent Pepper trembling with fear.

 _Oh my God_

 _Oh my God_

 _I'm going to die here_

 _In an elevator_

 _God damnit_

Just when the Thudding got to it's loudest… It stopped.

There was only a long awkward silence or pause…

It was like a sudden random peace had just decided to creep over Stark towers and told everything to be quiet…

"Tony?" Pepper shouted. She felt stupid for shouting so loudly like that, but she felt as if she had almost no choice… She was stuck in an elevator that God only knows how far up.

"Tony…?"

 _BANG!_

The elevator door slammed open, revealing the heartbreaker armor as it ripped apart the elevator doors. At this point, the elevator was shaking so violently that Pepper could no longer feel her legs.

"Tony stop!" She shouted desperately at the heartbreaker suit, hoping that Tony would stop ripping up the elevator, and take her somewhere safe to explain what was going on. The problem was… The suit didn't stop.

At this point, Pepper was too much in shock to say anything else.. The heartbreaker's eyes were locked onto her and wouldn't look away.

All she could do was close her eyes and look away, as she prepared for her death. She could already see her tombstone's message: _Here lies Pepper Potts, who died in an elevator._

Heartbreaker suddenly then stopped, and stepped into the elevator. She could feel the machine's heavy footsteps as it walked towards her…

Pepper took a deep breath, and looked into her killer's eyes one last time… However instead of hitting her with it's repulsors, it reached down slowly and positioned itself above her body. She glanced behind it, to see that it had torn the elevator apart to create a cage of some sort out of the elevator parts.

She sighed with relief to know that she was safe… There were screams and thuds still in the background, but at least she felt safe. She sighed one more time in relief… and then…

SNAP!

 **SWOOOSH!**

The elevator fell, along with the rest of the building that was above her.

She immediately passed out before hitting the ground… Her ears were ringing too much to even hear the bang as they hit the bottom floor anyways…

The only things that she barely remember past that, was pain. Lots and lots of pain.

She also felt a large, cold metal machine on top of her body, and was relieved when it was pried off of her. The only other cry she heard that night, was her own in pained relief, as men exclaimed: "We found her! We found potts!" and "We need to get her to a hospital".

And with that… The rest was all black.


	2. The Pyms

**Hey guys!**

 **Just to clear up any confusion that may be going around- This IS a continuation of Chapter 1. NO, Chapter 1 was NOT a "one shot" story.  
** **I am co-writing this with a lovely friend of mine, and she's written quite a few fan-fictions than me before, where-as I've only written one... But you'll see that the story line will jump back and forth between character's perspectives every chapter. There will be a Pepper/Hill story-line and a Hope/Romanoff story-line! Eventually they will combine into one, but just keep reading! It's really good and I'm excited :D Especially since this is my first fan-fiction! (So any commentary/criticism goes a long way!)**

 **Thanks guys, and enjoy the read :)**

* * *

Pym mansion: Usually a welcoming place for Hope since her father had given her, her mother suite, but there was something different about today. The lights were on and she could see 2 figures in the sitting room but they seemed to be arguing. She hesitated at the door a moment before slowly opening the doors and slipping in without a sound. Upon entering the house she heard Hank yelling, probably at Scott for standing her up last night. Not wanting to see the pair she went straight for the lab downstairs. The voices of men were steadily rising until suddenly the stopped abruptly. Hope paused in the kitchen and turned to go see what had happened to cause them to stop. She stepped into the hall and saw a flash of blue and yellow before an explosion rocked the mansion and knocked her back.

Hope's first thought was to get to her suite. Smoke filled the air and she could see fire spreading from the sitting room to the hallway. Debris cover the floor making it difficult for her to get to the basement door. She managed to get it open and get down the stairs before she heard someone follow her. 'The safe' her mind whispered directing her attention to her greatest defense. After ripping the door to the safe open she slipped her suite on over her clothes as fast as she could. The sound of footsteps overtook the ringing in her ears and panic was starting to grip her as they got closer. Once the suite was on she slammed her hand to her belt only to have someone grab her arm from behind. Hope screamed and started to fight against whoever was grabbing her. She felt something heavy connect with the back of her head before blacking out.

* * *

It was several hours later when Hope sat up and looked around. The room was a harsh white and the bright lights caused a sharp pain to formed in her the front of her head. 'Focus. I need to know where I am.' She thought to herself and tried to push the pain away with sheer will power. It took a moment for her to get up from the bed and get her bearings but once she did she realised she wasn't alone in the room. Hank was asleep in a chair against the wall. 'Stupid old man.' Though she thought this she couldn't help the small fond smile that crossed her lips briefly. Upon further inspection she noted there was a second chair that had Scott's jacket hung over it, although the man was nowhere to be seen. Making sure not to wake Hank she moved to sit up and then everything started to spin. 'Alright bad idea.' She thought to herself, squeezing her eyes shut and bringing a hand to her forehead. Once the pounding in her head faded a bit she opened her eyes and got up from the bed. It took a moment or two for her to get moving but Once she did she headed straight for the door. This place seemed like hospital so hopefully she could find a nurse or something and find out what happened. The last thing she could remember was sneaking into the mansion and hearing her boyfriend and father arguing, it gets a little hazy after that.

When she pulled the door open she was greeted by Scott arguing with a red headed woman who was guarding the door. She didn't get to hear what they were arguing about though, because as soon as the door opened the redhead had turned to her. "Ms. Van dyne." She greets softly. "You shouldn't be out of bed, you took a harsh blow to the back of your head." Hope smiled a bit at the small hint of genuine concern in her voice. "I'm fine. I was just…" She trailed off when Scott's eyes met hers. He still looked upset, but there was relief too. Well that made her feel a little better, at least he cared a little bit. She was still mad at him for standing her up. She shifted her slightly irritated gazed back to the beautiful red head in front of her. "Where am I? What happened?" Hope asked.

"You are in Shield's Medical bay. You took a blow to the head and a few bruises and scrapes from the explosion." The redhead replied and looked to Scott. "Why don't you go get Ms. Van Dyne something to eat. I'm sure she must be hungry since you stood her up."

Hope's eyebrows shot up as she heard this unsure how the redhead knew that. Scott looked equally surprised and then turned grumbling as he walked down the hall.

"Now Ms.-"

"Please, call me Hope. I have a feeling you know more about me then most." She said leaning on the door frame. She was still feeling a little light headed.


	3. Long Nights & Early Mornings

**Hey guys!**

 **Thanks again for reading this far- If you've commented or sent any criticism in, just know that I appreciate you so much!  
**

 **This chapter is a favorite chapter of mine, and because of this chapter... Chapter 5 is going to be just oh so cool!**

 **Let me know what you guys think!**

 **Enjoy the read :)**

* * *

Bright lights flooded into Pepper's eyes. Her ears rang violently with an irritating high-pitched ringing, followed by the slow and deep sound of her heavy breathing before she observed her surroundings.

 _Where am I?_

Her head buzzed with pain in a sharp headache, and her eyes made out a tall black figure standing in front of her.

"Well it's about time Mrs. Potts" a deep and awe-inspiring voice then echoed in the room, "You've been out cold for 2 days straight now."

A voice humming that deep, and yet leave a trailing echo behind his every word, could only mean one man: Nick Fury.

"What? Where am I? The.. The building.. An elevator.. Oh god… Tony! I-"

"Woah, slow down," Nick interrupted, holding Pepper down, "Everything's going to be alright. You're safe now."

"Safe? I- Oh God…." Pepper sighed, her vision now fully returning to her.

"I hope that you're not afraid of heights Mrs Potts… Because here, we do much more than first class..."

"That's his way of saying that we're on the helicarrier." Another voice came in from the hallway as Maria Hill stepped into the room, handing Fury a small cardboard box, no bigger than the palm of his hand.

"What's that?" Pepper asked. Maria turned and glared at her, as if to say: "Official Shield business, back off." However Fury took a step towards her.

"This," he explained, "was a little something we had been holding onto for Tony…"

"Was?" Pepper asked, swapping expressions with Maria.

Nick sighed, and sat down in the chair next to him, before staring deeply at Pepper with a loss for words.

Pepper's breathing deepened, "Oh… You mean…."

"He's gone Pepper." Maria Finished for her.

Pepper stared blankly at the wall in front of her… A tear ran down quietly down her face. After the long pause, she finally spoke.

"How did he die?" She asked, looking up at Nick and Maria.

"Well, that's the weird part," Maria pitched, choosing her next words carefully, "We're not entirely sure if he is dead… He was last seen with spider-man."

Pepper's heart jumped, "We have to find him! He could still be out there?!"

Nick Fury stood up, "You think we aren't already are? We have all of our men currently on it. Problem is Mrs Potts… I'm afraid that Stark was not the only target. Captain America has gone missing, the Pym mansion is in ruins, and Wakanda is currently in flames. That's not even mentioning how SHIELD was able to get their helicarrier back in the air for a few days."

"What… What happened then? Has Ultron returned?"

"That's… The other half of the story," Maria stepped forward into the light, "We're not sure. If he has, then he hasn't bothered to make an appearance yet."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Pepper's face began to grow confused.

"Virginia…" Fury sighed, making Pepper flinch as he used her first name, "Spiderman wasn't helping tony two nights ago. He was the one who attacked him."

Pepper nearly then chocked, "Wh- What?!"

"Before you ask... We don't know why." Fury then held the small box in his hand upwards, and examined it. "Wherever Tony is, the search party will be forced to stop searching by protocol, after 72 hours. Currently, there are only 23 hours left before we must acclaim him dead."

"And then what?" Pepper looked up, her eyes wet with tears.

"And then we move onto his will. There's only two things on it… First, all of his possessions and money are to be passed down to you Pepper."

Fury grabbed a small tissue box next to him, and offered Pepper a tissue. "Thanks. And the second thing?"

Fury handed her the small box.

"It was supposed to be for your Anniversary"

"He actually remembered when that was?"

"Well, he's owned that thing for a year and a half now, so you tell me."

A slight curl of a smile hit Pepper's lips, as she could just imagine her already scolding Tony for forgetting.

Her fingers trailed around the box's opening with curiosity.

"For now, until we figure out what is going on… I insist that you stay on the helicarrier, for your safety of course."

Pepper nodded

"I will fetch a guard to escort you from med-bay to your personal cabin, and give you a tour of the ship."

Pepper nodded again, still gazing wondrously at the box.

Fury and Maria exchanged glances one last time, before leaving quietly…

She wondered… _Could it be?_

Pepper slowly opened the box, revealing a ring inside. She recognized the ring immediately as Wakandan, the jewel being made of pure vibranium. It was a 300-billion-dollar ring, made out of the rarest crystallite in the world.

Pepper burst into tears.

 _"Please come back to me Tony. Please just come back."_ She muttered under her breath.

It was going to be a long night….


End file.
